Falling
by Herz von Silber
Summary: Something that popped into my head while listening to music. One shot.


"Will?" Tessa called out into his empty room. It was nearly sunset, and no one had seen a trace of him the whole day. "Will? Are you in here? I guess not." she added, seeing he wan't in his room. She almost left when she saw an envolope laying on his bed. It wasn't anything out of the ordinary, just a plain white affair. She walked over to the bed and picked it up. Her name was written on it. There was something about that one litttle word that made her heart stop. Slowly, she opened it and pulled out the paper inside. It read:

_Dear Tessa,_

_I'm sorry this is how I must say goodbye, but I simply can't say it to your face. If you're reading it now, then I was sucessful in my mission, and I can no longer hurt you._

_From the first time I saw you, you had changed me. I didn't want to admit it, but you did. I tried to hide it, but I couldn't. I was afraid you would find my secret, so I pushed you away, but somehow, I only managed to pull you closer. Now I see, the closer I am to you, the more I hurt you._

_I'm sorry. I'm sorry for all the times I've hurt you. It was not fair to you. I thought that, if I was cruel enough, you would abandon me forever. You saw right through that. I see that you are such a good person that you would never do what's best for you and leave. _

_Ah, I wish I could be stronger. I wish I had never hurt you. I wish I could simply let you love Jem and be happy. But every time I see you two together, it hurts me. It causes me physical pain. When we touch, it feels like I might catch fire. I love how it feels. But, when I see you cry, I feel like I'm dying. When I know I am the reason, I feel, I cxan't say how I feel. There are no words for it. That is the reason for what I am about to do._

_The only way to let you be happy is for me to leave. But life without you is not life at all. Last night I did not sleep at all thinking about it. There must be a way to solve the problem. Well, tonight, I will solve it. The solution is all too clear. _

_Tonight, I find the solution on the bridge. Please don't think little of me. This is truely the only way. Just know that I love you. I always will._

_Forever yours, _

_Will_

Tessa stared at the paper. Then, she ran out the door. She ran all the out the gate. She didn't stop until she reached the bridge. It was a very secluded area. Hardly anyone came here. It was where Will took her once. It overlooked a particular rocky part of the river.

She looked around, trying to spot him. She hoped against hope she wasn't too late.

There. He was sitting on the stone railing. He hadn't noticed her yet. She started to walk over to him. Then, he slowly stood up on the stone. _Oh, god, he's going to jump. _ Tessa ran over to him. He leaned over. Time seemed to slow. She saw him tipping. Almost there. He was almost horizontal. There!

"Will, no!" Tessa yelled, reaching out for him. She grabbed hold of his arm. The force of his fall nearly pulled Tessa over the edge. She just barely managed to stay put.

"Tessa! What in God's name are you doing here?" Will exclaimed.

"Stopping you!" she yelled back. He looked shocked. He went to say something, but Tessa interupted him. "What the hell do you think you're doing? What would suicide help you stupid idiot?"

"Let go, Tess. It's better this way, trust me."

"Trust you? In case you didn't notice, you're hanging over the edge of a bridge. I don't think now is a good time to trust your judgement."

Tessa slipped forward a little. She just caught herself. "Let go, Tess, you're gonna fall!"

"No! I'm not letting go of you!" she said. She slipped another inch. "Now, help me get you up!"

"Why are you so stubborn?" Will yelled back. "Why are willing to kill yourself over a lost cause?"

She slipped further. If she moved anymore, she'd go down. "You are not a lost cause! You're being ridiculous!"

"Tess, let go. There is no point."

"No!"

"You'll kill yourself!"

"Then I will die." Tessa looked deep into his eyes. "I'd rather be dead then lose you."

Will stared at her. She would die for him? Why? He didn't deserve her love. "Tess, I-" He cut off by Tessa slipping off the edge. She temporarily lost her grip on him. He grabbed her by the waist with one arm, and with the other, grabbed the bridge. He felt them smack into the side of the bridge, but he didn't care. He had almost just lost her. "Hold on, Tess." he said. He readjusted his grip on the old stone so they were anchored a little more. "Now," he said, looking at her, "what the hell? Why didn't you let go?"

"I told you, I'd rather die then watch you go. If you go, I go too."

He couldn't believe her. His first reaction to her was disbelief. How could one person care so much for another? It didn't seem possible. The second was an overwhelming sense of love. Then, his protective side came out. They were dangling just above their deaths. The only thing keeping them alive was a hundread year old bridge. He shook his head. "Hold on, I'll get us out of here." After she got a firmer grip on him, he climbed up the side of the bridge, Tessa on his back. When they got over the railing, he tried to move away from her, but she wouldn't let him go.

"You don't think I'm going to let you go back over the edge, do you?" she said. He rolled his eyes at her, but didn't struggle any further. He like the feeling her hand in his.

They looked out over the water for a little while. Finally, Will said softly, "Why did you come?"

Tessa looked over at him, but he was still gazing at the river. The sun was setting, sending multi-colored rays out to play on the water. She looked back out at the scene. "I found the letter on your bed."

They sat in silence some more. "It's beautiful, isn't it?" he said, gesturing to the river.

"Yes, it is." Tessa glanced over at him. His face betrayed no emotion. "Where have you been all day?"

"Here and there. Mostly the river. I kept trying to do it, but I couldn't find the courage until now." He sighed. "I thought about maybe leaving town. But I knew that wouldn't work. No where to go. No where far enough away."

"Is it really so bad living with me?" she said.

"It's not you, Tessa. Not you at all." he said quickly. "It's what I do to you."

"What do you-"

"You can't tell me I haven't ever hurt you?" he said, cutting her off. He looked deep into her eyes. "That I haven't ever made you cry? That I haven't ever been so cruel that you stay locked up in your room? That when you ignore my presence it's because I cut you deep inside?" He ripped his gaze from hers. "I hate that I do it to you. It's because I don't want to hurt you further. If I could have just let you be. But no, I always have to- it's jsut better if I were to leave."

"Why can't you jsut let me in?" Tessa whispered.

"I don't want you to know what's inside me. I don't even want to know all I do. I could never put it all on you, too." His voice started to choke. "It scares me, Tess. Things I've seen, things I've done." He wiped a tear from his face. "Some things can't be forgiven."

Tessa wrapped her arms around him. He melted into her. "How can you be forgiven if you never let it out?" She was amazed. He had never been this emotional, plain, truthful. Never this open.

Will slowly pulled out of the embrace. "You could not forgive the things I've done."

"How do you know?"

"I just do."

Tessa turned her back to him. So close, he had been so close to opening up. It hurt her to see him pained so much. What was so bad that he shut himself away from everyone? Why wouldn't he just tell her?

"I'm sorry, Tess. I shouldn't have said that." Will said.

"I-it's not that. Not what you said." He would never understand, would he? She felt so angry, sad, helpless, and- scared. Why was that? What was there to be scared of?

"Then what? Why do you look so scared?"

Did she seem scared? "I don't know. I guess, I guess I was scared of losing you."

"Scared of losing me? Why?" Will asked.

"You don't get it, do you?" she snapped. "I love you, Will. That will never change. Nothing you do will ever make me stop loving you."

"I- I-" he stuttered.

"When I saw you falling, I felt my heart go with you. You are the only reason I have to live now." Will was dumbfounded.

"What about Jem and the others?" he asked.

"I love them, but not like you. All my life, I've had no one I could rely on. No one who was there for me. My aunt loved me, but she couldn't protect me from everything. And you saw what happened with my brother. I thought, when I got to the Institute, I had finally found someone. I guess I was wrong."

"I'm sorry, Tess."

"Are you?" she said softly. The way she said it hurt. She turned away from him. "If you want me to leave you alone, I guess I will." She walked away from him slowly. This was the last time. He would never hurt her again. She was done.

"Please." Will's voice drifted by her. "Please don't go." She froze. _No, keep going._ He sounded so, so young. So innocent. _He'll only hurt you even more._ He needed her. _You only hurting yourself._ He needed her. She felt his hand rest on her shoulder. "I am sorry."

That was it. She spun around, burying herself in his arms. She didn't care what intuition said. He needed her. She needed him. Even if it was the worst decision of her life. She would always chose Will.

**Well, I was listening to Give me a Sign by Breaking Benjamin, and this came into my head. Tell me what you think.**


End file.
